IRB Racing Carnivals - Winter 2013 Season

The first three rounds of the TRE Victorian IRB competition have seen Hampton Life Saving Club’s IRB teams get off to a great start competing in our first season. In Round 1 at Dromana LSC on 5th May, James Crockatt, Christian Aquila, Calum Clephane and Alex Walton came third in their Mass Rescue heat. In the Surf Rescue event, Darren Stone, Jeff Walton and Calum Clephane, came 6th in their heat, an outstanding effort as it is one of the fastest and most competitive events.

The first ‘double header’ of the winter season at Ocean Grove SLSC on 11th & 12th May, saw high attendance numbers with over 150 competitors from 16 clubs entered each day. The competition is highly regulated so getting through Saturday and only being disqualified in one race is a genuine achievement.  A great result with Hampton qualifying to compete in the final of the Teams Rescue and getting through to the semi-finals in the Tube Rescue event. On Sunday the ability to handle the bigger surf as the swell picked up allowed the teams to consolidate their techniques and demonstrate their abilities in rescue scenarios. 

Junior Life Saving Championships

Well it's a lot easier to write positively about this year's Junior Life Saving Championships than it was last year! We had good weather (who worries about a little drizzle now and then?), great team spirit and and even greater individual and team performances.  I want to start by thanking everyone who endured last year's weather-impacted event but didn't let it faze them and returned to the comp squad this year. I have no doubt you and your Nippers will agree, it's been soooo worth it!

With the addition of Lloyd and his team of trainers, we have watched our Nippers improve their skills, confidence and fitness. Watching them dig in during their Mad Monday Irons, I couldn't be more proud!

So, how did we go this weekend? On the Saturday (and the early part of Sunday morning), Hampton won SEVEN INDIVIDUAL MEDALS!!!!!!!!  PLUS SEVEN top 6 places and qualified in 32 finals out of a possible 58!

The under 9 girls team of just Charlotte Garbelotto is looking forward to some more team mates next year! Her moment of the day was handling the challenging surf on her board - well done Charbelotto!

The Under 9 boys team of Charlie Schwerdt, Angus Cameron, Adam Doyle, Luke Henry and Darby Wellberry had a great first day: Angus got points for the Club in the final of the Beach Sprint (5th), as did Charlie in the Wade Race (6th). Luke was 8th in the Final of the Wade Race and in the Final of the Surf Race, Charlie, Luke and Angus came out as a team, 8th, 9th and 10th respectively. Great work!

The Under 10 girls of Chloe Hoover, Chloe Hutton, Lucy Webster, Lauren Pratt, Loretta DeNittis, Jorja Hunter and Amelia James missed Sophie Bolmat on the first day (State Athletics commitments). But they still managed to shine in their own right. Chloe Hoover was the first to win points for the Club in the Long Run, and then went even better to pick up a silver medal in the Beach Sprint and a bronze in the Flags! Loretta DeNittis was't worried about States being her first Nipper Carnival ever - she wandered away with a 5th in the Beach Sprint and made the Final of the Flags. You go, girls!

Under 10 boys of Will Garbelotto, James Chadwick and Noah Hill are also looking for more boys to join them. But they still had a great day with James finishing 6th in the Long Run plus making the Final of the Wade Race. They all gave their best in every event.

The Under 11 boys of Ben Doolan, Charlie Conroy, Declan Conroy, Dom Frederico, Lachlan Costello, Michael Garbelotto, Will Laverty and Zac Fullagar are a team of champions! Zac won bronze in the Long Run, Ben Doolan was 6th in the Final of the Beach Flags and 8th in the Final of the Beach Sprint. Michael Garbelotto achieved an awesome result of 7th in the Final of the Iron and a 5th in the individual Surf Race. Declan and Charlie were 14th and 15th in the Final of the Surf Race, confirming that twins stick together. Dom Frederico powered around the Iron course, despite the swim leg not being his strongest suit, to qualify for the Final and finish 13th overall!  And finally, to Lachlan Costello who smashed out 3 great Board Races (heat, semi, final) to bring home a fantastic 9th in the Final (not much longer before Dad will need to paddle his Kayak to keep up with him!).

The Under 11 Girls of Isabella Cameron, Georgia Dick, Juliette Doyle, Rebecca Elliott missed Ellen Pratt due to a Basketball Final. Rebecca didn't worry that it was her first States, she just jumped into the Flags and pulled out a bronze medal! Well done also to Isabella who came 11th in the Long Run. Juliette Doyle showed her prowess on the Board coming 2nd in her heat and 10th in the Final.

In the Under 12 Boys, a gastro bug literally halved the squad of Evgeni Daraganov and Christian Griffin, so Evgeni competed on his own, with the support of the Under 12 girls. Well done Evgeni and we look forward to him having more team mates next season!

The Under 12 girls of Chloe Wells, Ella DeSanto, Emily Dare, Erin Reed, Jamie Mawkes, Jessie Ingerson, Katie Heath, Lucy Hagan and Olivia May collectively had their best State Carnival ever in terms of results. Jamie started the day off well, finishing 5th in the Long Run. Jessie should be very proud of her 13th place. Lucy Hagan narrowly missed making the Final of the Beach Sprint but Olivia May was 5th in the Final (check out the official LSV results for confirmation). Chloe, Erin, Lucy and Olivia all competed deep into the Semi Finals of the Flags, but Jamie and Emily, with lots of guts and determination, both made the Final, with Jamie finishing 8th and Emily 9th. The Age managers gave Jamie and Jessie Nipper of the day for contesting every event, but credit has to go to Emily, who was a 'Nipper possessed' in the Flags!

The Under 13 Boys was just Hamish Hill on the Saturday. His best event is always the swim and he performed well in a strong field, making and competing in the Final. His Board Race was a tight contest, ultimately determined by who could get on the 'party wave' to make the Final. Hamish should be proud that he gave it a 'red hot go'. 

The Under 13 Girls of Alida Fullagar, Annabelle Eastman, Phoebe Conroy, Sarah Webster, Sienna Costello and Taylor Mawkes were cheered on by a recovering Emmie Frederico. The day could not have started better for them with Belle winning Gold in her Long Run. She backed up with fourths in her Individual Iron and Board and them teamed up with Phoebe to finish 6th in their Board Rescue. Annabelle finished the day earning points for her Club in every event she contested!  Alida won bronze in her Flags but had to wait until the Sunday, to pick up her second individual medal, with a silver in the Sprint!  Accolades to Taylor, who, whilst unwell, still achieved her best ever result in the Flags, making the Semi Final. Sarah Webster was also impressive on her Board, finishing 10th in the Final, before heading back to Melbourne for her Basketball Final.

And finally to the Under 14s of Bridgette Hagan, Isabella Shaw, Lara Laverty, Nicole Griffin and Sophie Doolan. They were competing in their last Nipper carnival before they head up to Under 15s and we are so proud of them. They exude fantastic team spirit and support for each other, led by the wonderful Matt Shaw. Congratulations to Sophie Doolan who was 9th in the Final of the Surf Race. Special mention to Bridgette Hagan, who, having won Gold in the Under 15 Flags at the Senior State Championships, was hungry for the double. But injury put paid to that and she had to watch from the sidelines. Tough stuff, but to her credit, she kept up a smile. She was also a medal chance in the Beach Sprint and made the Final, but again injury was her curse. She bravely finished the race and deserves praise from us all.

There were a few more highlights from Saturday: 

Watching the Hampton March Past team proudly 'strut their stuff' around the course, led by Team Captain, Isabella Shaw. And they were front and centre of the presentations when our very own Yvette Costello was nominated 2013 Nipper Parent of the Year!  This award recognises the tireless hours she spends in her many roles at the Club. Volunteer organisations can only succeed with the involvement of people like Yvette and we salute her! 

Dinner at the Pub.  What a fabulous way to reflect on the day's achievements, with Club spirit at its highest. I was honoured to be able to read out such fantastic individual results and hear the cheers as we celebrated medal and top six places across the age groups.

So, now onto Sunday and the team events..........Hampton won EIGHT MEDALS!!!!!! and SIX top 6 Places, as well as making 27 Team Finals out of 50 contested! That's one team medal more than last year!

The Under 9 Boys continued the Hampton initiation tradition - by letting their enthusiasm get the better of them and DQing themselves in the Beach Relay. We really need to come up with a more positive initiation tradition than this one.....But, thanks to the support and encouragement of Stuart Cameron they bounced back and made the final of the wade relay, finishing 7th.

The Under 10 Boys were undermanned, but with the help of Luke Henry from Under 9s they qualified in the Final of the Aqua Cameron. We will be working hard to build up our stocks in this age group for next year. Congratulations to these boys and their parents for hanging in there, despite not having a full team. I know it's not easy when other age groups around you have teams aplenty!

The Under 10 Girls were joined by Sophie Bolmat for the team events but also missed a medal through DQ. But with the help of a raft of supportive parents, they kept their spirits up and had a magnificent Wade Relay. Leading from the outset, they were never challenged and Chloe Hoover, Lauren Pratt, Lucy Webster and Sophie Bolmat came away with a gold medal! Chloe Hoover, Lucy and Sophie were 8th in their Board Relay Final. With Jorja, Amelia and Loretta all competing in their FIRST ever Nipper carnival, we are already looking forward to next year - they will be a collective force to be reckoned with!

The Under 11 Boys proved that they are also a champion team! They came home with three medals, the most team medals of all the age groups! First up was bronze in the Beach Relay (Ben, Charlie, Will and Zac). Then they backed up with bronze in the Wade Relay (Declan, Charlie, Michael and Dom). And to finish off, Declan, Charlie, Michael and Zac won bronze in the Surf Teams!  But the day had its challenges too with Ben hit in the head by a board and rushed to hospital for observation. Thankfully he is fine and was released later that day. With the help of James Chadwick from the Under 10s, they were still able to field both Aqua Cameron teams. They both qualified in the Final and were 6th and 7th respectively. Great work, boys!

The Under 11 Girls were joined by Ellen Pratt (Basketball commitments) but had a tough day at the office, especially in the water events where they faced some of the biggest surf of the day. But to their credit, they bravely fought on and should be proud of themselves for giving it a go. Next year, girls!

The Under 12 Girls, were also tested by the challenging conditions in the water, but had brilliant success on dry land. They (Jamie, Lucy, Emily and Olivia) won their first ever States medal in the Beach Relay and chose the best colour - Gold!  And within the hour, Jamie and Olivia had backed up to win silver in the Belt and Reel! Well done girls and let's keep training hard and believing in ourselves for those water events!

The Under 13 Girls were joined by Isy Briggs and also helped out by Ella, Chloe and Erin from the Under 12s to make up team numbers. It was a good day on the beach for these girls, also, with Phoebe, Taylor, Annabelle and Alida winning Silver in the Beach Relay and then Phoebe and Taylor securing their 2nd Silver in the Belt and Reel. Alida and Sienna were 5th in their Belt and Reel - a great job. They also picked up points for the Club in the Board Rescue (6th) and Aqua Cameron (5th) and will continue to chase the elusive medal in these events.  The introduction of long boards might just work in our favour, there.

The Under 13 Boys did it tough. Christian and Evgeni had come up from Under 12s, but with Christian still struggling with illness, it was a big ask for the team. But they soldiered on and competed in every event they had qualified in, including the surf teams when other clubs fell away. We continue to search for strong competitors to join these boys next year and beyond. 

The Under 14 Girls were searching for a medal in their final day of Nippers, but the Gods were not on their side. However, they picked up two fourth places in the Beach Relay (Alida, isabella, Lara and Nicole) and Belt and Reel (Isabella and Sophie), scored points for their Club and should be extremely proud. Well done to Nicole and Bella for contesting every event and thanks to Taylor for helping out in the long board relay and Alida for replacing the injured Bridgette in the Beach Relay.

So, the final wrap. While we were more successful with our overall results this year, we did not quite reach our goal of top 10 (we were 12th by just a couple of points). However, (says she of the glass half full variety), we can only have influence over our own results, not the results of other Clubs. I am more focussed on and impressed with our improvement as competitors. We need to celebrate our fantastic achievements and look forward to even greater success next year. We know there are more medals out there for the taking, we just need to take them and keep them!

Two very simple goals for next year are to field teams in every single age group, both boys and girls, so we can at least contest those team events. And we will continue to work on our relays, refine our training for the younger age groups and give them the best chance to hold onto their very deserving medals!

I wish to thank all the WSO, Officials, Age Group Managers, parents and support crew who helped in so many ways throughout the season and the weekend. And we all want to thank Lloyd and his team of coaches for their work over the season. Go Lloyd!